Durham professor helps wrongfully convicted

Dr. Brian Cutler of UOIT assists in recent exoneration case

Brian Cutler

Ryan Pfeiffer / Metroland

OSHAWA -- Dr. Brian Cutler, a professor and associate dean with the faculty of social sciences and humanities at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology, assisted Chicago-based Northwestern University’s Center on Wrongful Convictions in its efforts to exonerate Christopher Coleman. Mr. Coleman, an innocent man, spent 19 years in prison for armed robbery, home invasion, residential burglary and aggravated criminal sexual assault, based on mistaken eyewitness testimony. June 9, 2014.

DURHAM -- Part of a relatively small network of researchers involved in eyewitness identification, a UOIT professor knows this testimony can result in someone going to jail for a crime they didn’t commit.

“I’ve been involved as a consultant or an expert witness in over 150 different cases,” said Dr. Brian Cutler, a University of Ontario Institute of Technology professor and associate dean in the Faculty of Social Science and Humanities.

Dr. Cutler mainly educates judges and juries on the psychology of eyewitness identification, and how memory can sometimes go wrong.

“I’m an educator,” said Dr. Cutler. “I find that fulfilling, regardless of how the case ends.”

I’m an educator. I find that fulfilling, regardless of how the case ends. Dr. Brian Cutler, UOIT

Most recently, Dr. Cutler was involved, albeit modest about his role, in assisting in Northwestern University’s Center on Wrongful Convictions’ efforts to exonerate a man who spent 19 years in prison for armed robbery and related charges. Christopher Coleman was convicted based on eyewitness testimony only, as there was no physical evidence linking him to the crime.

As a result of advocacy by the CWC, Mr. Coleman was released on bond in November and granted a new trial. Dr. Cutler reviewed the case file and submitted a report on the eyewitness identifications in the case. He was prepared to testify in the retrial, but in the end, the prosecutor dropped the charges.

Dr. Cutler has written numerous books and articles on mistaken identification, having studied the topic since the 1980s.

Dr. Cutler said between half and three-quarters of all known cases of wrongful conviction involve mistaken identity. Although these witnesses were ultimately wrong, they were honest and confident.

“Confident witnesses are persuasive to judges and juries,” said Dr. Cutler.

Dr. Cutler is also an expert in false confessions and explained that suspects can be coerced into confessing to a crime, even if they didn’t do it. Techniques adopted by police include feigning sympathy for the suspect’s situation and offering face-saving excuses for the suspect’s behaviour. Techniques such as these can cause a suspect to start believing new truths, as can long interviews and fatigue. Youth and people with developmental disabilities or mental illness are particularly susceptible to admitting to a crime they did not commit, Dr. Cutler said.

Factors such as stress or the presence of a weapon can also make eyewitness testimonies less accurate. Other factors that can lead to mistaken identity include the manner in which a lineup is composed and conducted.

Dr. Cutler was recently involved in a case where the lineup played a large role in a conviction. Duke University School of Law’s Wrongful Conviction Clinic is working to exonerate Charles Ray Finch, who has been in prison in North Carolina since 1976 when he was convicted of murder based on eyewitness identification.

“Mistaken identification was a big factor in this case,” said Dr. Cutler.

Dr. Cutler believes Mr. Finch was indicted based on many flaws, including a misleading lineup that largely led to his conviction after the murder of a store clerk.

Mr. Finch was one of six black men placed in the lineup, and he was the only one wearing a three-quarter length coat -- a common item of clothing in the 1970s, one that the only eyewitness had recognized. Mr. Finch was largely indicted based on that eyewitness account.

Dr. Cutler is still waiting to hear whether Mr. Finch, now 75, will get to walk free.

While there is always pressure to close cases, police services have been improving their methods of collecting and presenting information to witnesses.

“I think by and large, investigators want to get the right person,” Dr. Cutler said.

For example, a witness used to be shown a lineup of six to eight photos simultaneously and asked to identify the person they believe committed the crime. Now, the photos are often shown one at a time so witnesses can just try to choose the correct person, rather than comparing them and choosing the person who simply looks most like the perpetrator.

Also, officers not involved in the case will now usually show the photos because there is a risk that an officer involved in the case will inadvertently convey their expectation of whom to pick.

These newer practices are based on research conducted by Dr. Cutler and others from universities across Canada and the U.S.

Kristen Calis covers Pickering and writes a pet column for the Metroland Media Group’s Durham Region Division. Anyone with upcoming animal charity events that they would like listed in Kristen’s Kritters can e-mail kcalis@durhamregion.com.